Hazen native honored for her dedicated scholarship
By Daniel Arens
One woman from Hazen has dedicated much of her life to highlighting both the struggles and accomplishments of women in our nation. She was recently recognized for this dedication by the university where she currently works.
Teri Finneman, a journalism professor at South Dakota State University (SDSU), was named the 2017 Outstanding Scholar for the College of Arts and Sciences for the university during a ceremony on Feb. 21. Finneman is only in her second year at the university, and she is gratified to receive this recognition after just a short time.
Throughout her life, Finneman’s major interests have been media, women, politics, and history. Her accomplishments come from her academic contributions to all of these fields, and the ways in which they interrelate.
Among the most notable of Finneman’s achievements is the successful publication of “Press Portrayals of Women Politicians, 1870s-2000s: From ‘Lunatic’ Woodhull to ‘Polarizing’ Palin (Women in American Political History).” This book looks at four women of American history who profoundly impacted the role women play in politics.
Finneman said that major inspirations for writing the book came from a class she took exposing the double standards women receive, as well as a professor calling her research into the First Ladies “trivial.”
“After that, I really became an advocate for women,” Finneman said.
The timing of the publication could not have been better.
